Moderns...what fittings will you avoid when they are shiters.

[gary_davidson]

DMF - No thanks

 

DPF - No thanks

 

Stop/start - No thanks

 

Keyless - No thanks

 

Hybrid - No thanks

 

Electric park brake - No thanks

my 59 plate kia rio 1.5td doesn't have any of these, not quite shite territory yet for these but the turbos are getting a reputation for being a bit fragile

[Taff]

"My compnay car is a 63 plate BMW"

 

Good luck with that, hope you don't keep getting the blue-screen of death and have to keep re-booting until the PAS agrees to work.

 

it's a company car, luck doesn't come into it. If things run to form, it will have 100k and dealer FSH on it in two years and over to you lads while I get a shiney new one

[wuvvum]

A Renault badge.

[eddyramrod]

Anything diesel

Anything German, or probably also French

Anything with EPB

Anything with stop-start

Anything with a touch-screen

Anything with a manual gearbox

Anything with a tyre profile of less than 60%

 

I'm already putting this into practice, and have been for some time.  Panhard65, note that second comment above does not include any R25 Baccara V6 that might fall across my path...

[Squire_Dawson]

I followed a BMW 6 series yesterday, ( just the sort of car I would buy at ten years old if they weren't full of stuff I don't want). Anyway, I was amazed to see the wipers are still as for LHD on RHD cars, making rain driving as bad as BX!

I thought that particular bit of vorsprung dork meanness had stopped in the 80s. Amazing to see such obvious cheapskateyness on such an expensive car.

 

This would be a cost-saving measure, yes, but I also believe a lot of it is down to arrogance. I get this impression from German car adverts where the product, despite the advert being specifically for the UK, carries German licence plates and is shown in LHD. Also their rhetoric 'Vorsprung durch teknik' or whatever they show. Does anybody even know what that means?

 

This is a major put-off for me, I see it as arrogant and also get the impression the German 'prestige' car makers like to shit on anything British.

 

Other people seem to love it, though, and happily buy into all the whole German quality shite blissfully unaware of other considerations.

[tooSavvy]

V - D - T...... surely no one has forgotten the dulcet tones of Geoffrey Palmer [butterflies] describing the best way to get to the beach (& defeat the Nazi Towelling Blitz) was to buy the Kraut...????

 

Epic... and no, I won't evva buy one 

 

* getting a free gift from an employer doesn't really qualify

 

TS

[Mr Lobster]

Much as others have said, I'd avoid dsg gearboxes and all autos come to that, keyless entry and electronic parking brakes. A lot of the rest of the electronics will be difficult to avoid and aren't necessarily as big of a problem as you might expect if they do go wrong.

 

I remember people saying similar twenty years ago when the Mondeo came out and yet you could still be happily running around in an early Mondeo without much bother today.

 

Also, I was half thinking about buying a newish car. Sensible head says Dacia as it's reasonably well proven technology and reasonably basic so should be decent enough for what it is but then something a bit more exciting might be nice but then I found that so many I liked only had dsg 'boxes on petrol variants which puts me off for several reasons and some of the diesels do slightly worry me as to how good they would be at ten years old.

[Shep Shepherd]

Also their rhetoric 'Vorsprung durch teknik' or whatever they show. Does anybody even know what that means?

 

 

"Progress through Technology."

 

Interestingly, Audi pinched the slogan from NSU, who used it in adverts for the brilliant-but-mechanically-flawed Ro 80 in the early 1970s:

 

 

Pawnote: Just because something is made in Germany, it doesn't automatically mean that it's any good, despite what the marketing people tell us.

[Spiny Norman]

Anything where a £20 bit of cable has been replaced by £500 worth of coded electronics.

[Squire_Dawson]

If it weren't for BMW building the Austin Seven under licence, they probably would not have been here today.

[Des]

Catalytic converters are worth giving a wide berth, especially as they were there right at the start of it all going wrong.

[Junkman]

Has nothing to do with moderns or frumpishs, but apart from the obvious TLAs, the pinnacle of pointlessness for me is automatic wipers. Thousands starve to death each day, and our scientists waste their time with coming up with something that saves me flicking a switch with my thumb and forefinger. Should I ever meet the man who invented this bollox, I'll drag him out to the car park and treat him with a wheel brace.

[inconsistant]

A digital radio, electronical handbrake and bluetooth connectivity... fro

 

Roof rack, heated seats and a proper spare wheel... ftw

[Mr Lobster]

A digital radio, electronical handbrake and bluetooth connectivity... fro

 

With you on the elec handbrake but when I' m in mrs lobs car I really like the Bluetooth connectivity tbh. I'd rather like a digital radio as well.

[Guest Breadvan72]

A recent hire car Chrysler 300 jobby had the option of heated and cooled cup holders.   Pretty sure i will be able to continue to live without those.

 

The consensus on another car Forum that will remain nameless is that the best cupholder is a Czech gymnast.

[Ratdat]

Has nothing to do with moderns or frumpishs, but apart from the obvious TLAs, the pinnacle of pointlessness for me is automatic wipers. Thousands starve to death each day, and our scientists waste their time with coming up with something that saves me flicking a switch with my thumb and forefinger. Should I ever meet the man who invented this bollox, I'll drag him out to the car park and treat him with a wheel brace.

 

 I've only had two vehicles with this feature and it didn't work properly on either. It was just annoying and pointless. I like cars to have wires in them that make circuits via switches and fuses. It's an age old principle which works just fine. No computers needed.

[Albert Ross]

Here's the reason I mention airbags. I have a 5* NCAP vehicle. If (God forbid) I happen to need those airbags, and one of them doesn't work, it's me that suffers. If I have passengers, and they are hurt because of this, I could be sued if I haven't maintained this system.

[Richard]

A digital radio, electronical handbrake and bluetooth connectivity... fro

 

Roof rack, heated seats and a proper spare wheel... ftw

 

 

My digital radio is now on its sixth car since 2005, I'd hate to be without it.

[ProgRocker]

A digital radio, electronical handbrake and bluetooth connectivity... fro

 

Roof rack, heated seats and a proper spare wheel... ftw

 

I am of the opinion that the digital radio is a necessity in a modern car. It will only be a matter of time before analogue radios are phased out.

 

Agree about the spare wheel. This is a £95 cost option on the only brand new car I would consider buying - Dacia Sandero.

[Hendry]

I've got to disagree about auto wipers, I'm on my 3rd car fitted with them and think they are an excellent idea, I hate pissing about putting the wipers on and off constantly as the weather in this part of Scotland is rain for 10mins then a dry spell then rain for 10mins then another dry spell, also because they stop wiping straight away saving the windscreen from smearing when the rain stops and the wipers would normally keep going meaniń having to use the washers, plus when it does rain they speed up and slow down with the flow of rain meaning I don't need to keep switching from intermittent to continuous wipe to fast continuous wipe constantly, I just leave the stalk in the auto setting permanently and never need to touch it, it does seem lazy and you think "fuck sake it can't be that hard to flick a stalk" bub honestly its just such a convenient feature and once you've got used to it you miss it on other cars.

 

Same with auto lights, stalk constantly on auto, works brilliantly, its great not fucking about with stuff, just wish the car had climate control then itd be sorted, no fucking about getting the inside warmed up then when its hot enough turn heating down etc just stick it on a constant 19 degrees inside, I mean you don't fuck about with tuning a radio station or your seating position each time you get in your car so why should you have to piss about with lights, wipers and ventilation, should be able to just leave it the same constantly.

 

Heated windscreen without needing to buy a Ford or Land Rover to get the feature would be ideal too. Another thing I miss since most cars started getting air con is a sunroof, air con is good but can't beat a sunroof for fresh air (prefer sunroof open to opening a window)

[Pillock]

They've already had to postpone the beginning of the analogue radio switchoff because so many people aren't ready. One of the biggest markets for listening to the radio is in the car, so really it's car makers that have kind of screwed us over. 

 

I'm looking at one of those add-in units that takes a DAB signal, throws it down the FM aerial and then adds in the RDS information so you know what you're listening to. About £120 though....

 

Also, I'd be lost without Bluetooth. I regularly have hour-long conversations on the road, which would mean either working for an hour when I get home or delaying setting off from work by an hour. Bluetooth good. Mine would be even better if it streamed music off my phone but it's a bit too old.

[brickwall]

The Volvo has an LED that lights up a little snowflake that tells me it's cold out.

 

As for digi radio it's the transmitters. They only operate at 1/3 power and the stations broadcast in 44kps to save money

[eddyramrod]

Forgot to add, any car painted any shade of grey.  So basically I won't be buying any car at all built after about 1995.  And Bluetooth?  Who the feck needs that?  Either work or drive.  If you want to work in the car, get a chauffeur. 

 

 

That might have come over a bit harsh, but I do like to imagine that it's not just me looking where I'm going, however many times a day I get proved wrong.

[londonm]

If it weren't for BMW building the Austin Seven under licence, they probably would not have been here today.

If it weren't for Austin refusing to take VW as war repayment after WW2, on account that they thought the Beetle was crap, Austin may have been here today as well.

[Pillock]

 

As for digi radio it's the transmitters. They only operate at 1/3 power and the stations broadcast in 44kps to save money

 

It was my understanding that once FM is turned off, they can up the power on DAB and also the stations can spend a more on bandwidth to get more than the quite muddy compressed sound.

[Morgan84]

I like the reassurance some older technology gives over modern; seems I'm not alone in the dislike of electronic parking brakes. I like to know when I'm pulling the lever I am operating a cable and moving the shoes/calliper myself, not relying on a electronic switch and electronic motor which ' should work'.

[gordonbennet]

I fully understand why those who get company cars want all the toys, similarly for those who change every three years, again if you like toys its not a problem.

 

I don't want anything to do with the stuff though, the only brand new vehicle i've owned was a Hilux bought in 07 and sold 3.5 years later when no longer needed, if i was ever tempted back into a new vehicle thats the sort of engineering and relative simplicity i'll be looking for again.

 

 

Some good add ons to the not on your nelly list in the answers.

[TRW]

So, it appears from reading this thread the demand for the Maestro & Montego is going to go through the roof in the next few years.

 

Glad I 'bought in' before the OMGOLDSKOOLNODMFEGRPASFAILURE scene tax hits BL gear. I can just see a Montego Countryman being 'pineappled'. Ace!

[tooSavvy]

Dacia... Y K I M S 

 

 

TS

[crapcarcollector]

Here's the reason I mention airbags. I have a 5* NCAP vehicle. If (God forbid) I happen to need those airbags, and one of them doesn't work, it's me that suffers. If I have passengers, and they are hurt because of this, I could be sued if I haven't maintained this system.

What? Is that the actual fact of the matter, or just some cobblers you have dreamt up after eating too much cheese on toast late at night?

 

You do know you can actually get injured in a car crash with or without airbags, and the electronic overlord may decide not to deploy said airbags if it thinks there is no point. (Hit up the arse, rollover events etc), who do you passengers sue then? I'm being serious, because if thats true no one is getting a lift from me.